Thus, contrary to popular opinion, the second law does not dictate the decrease of ordered structure in its predictions, it only demands a вЂњspreading outвЂќ of energy in all processes.вЂќвЂ“Frank L. вЂњEnergetically, the second law of thermodynamics favors the formation of the majority of all known complex and ordered chemical compounds from the simpler elements. So, it is being redefined in many introductory textbooks for physics and chemistry as energy dispersal thanks to retired chemistry professor, Frank L. Therefore you are right that the production of helium and heavier elements (in their core) out of hydrogen, and the final explosion of massive stars as supernovae can be viewed as particular instances of the thermodynamic arrow of time.вЂќ Alexandre Le Tiec MCFP Postdoctoral Fellow in the Maryland Center for Fundamental Physics at University of Maryland, College Park, working in the field of theoretical astrophysics.ДЄlthough it relates to disorder in certain respects, people often become confused about вЂњentropy,вЂќ the second law of thermodynamics, as disorder. вЂњSince stars are very close to being isolated systems, the second law of thermodynamics states that their entropy can only grow with time.

I queried a science question and answer service regarding a major aspect of the book for a little confirmation, and confirmation I received. I have had an observation for some time now about an aspect of the theoretical heat death which I have since turned into a short book. WE HAVE MET THE вЂњHEAT DEATHвЂќ OF THE UNIVERSE IN PROGRESS, AND IT ISвЂ¦ US? And even before that, as the Universe cools, shouldnвЂ™t Entropy become reduced to a minimum state at 0 (zero) Degrees Kelvin? And if so, wouldnвЂ™t that violate the Second Law of Thermodynamics? Or, is there any measure of entropy or disorder/order in the universe outside of thermodynamics? But once all heat has left the Universe, and nothing ever changes, then вЂњEntropyвЂќ would seem (intuitively) to no longer exist. Heat death is the point at which the universe has finally settled down completely (or almost completely), and nothing interesting ever happens again.вЂќ With no energy differences, thereвЂ™s no reason for anything to change what itвЂ™s doing (all forces can be expressed as an energy imbalance or вЂњpotential gradientвЂњ). Once everything is the same temperature, the universe attains a вЂњsteady stateвЂќ. Both the burning of fuel (mostly through fusion in stars) and the distribution of heat are processes which increase entropy. The vast majority of the universe is already screaming cold, so the heat death of the universe is just about burning what fuel there is and mixing the heat so created into the ever-expansive, cold, and unyielding cosmos. Eventually the heat will have spread out so much that there wonвЂ™t be warmer objects and cooler objects. вЂќ The Sun, and every other star, is radiating heat into the universe. I read your answer to the above question, stating that: The Sun, and every other star, is radiating heat into the universe. The same thing happens on a much larger scale. There are more ways for things to be mixed than sorted. The idea (the math) behind that is the same as the idea behind mixing fluids or sands together. If you have a hot object next to a cold object, then the heat will spread so that the cooler object heats up, and the hotter object cools down, until the two are at the same temperature. One of the things that increasing entropy does is to spread out heat as much as possible. вЂњEntropyвЂќ is just a mathematical tool for extending the idea down to atomic interactions, where we donвЂ™t have a nice idea like вЂњdiceвЂќ to work with. You have to sit back and squint a little to see it. Or rather, will never find, because itвЂ™s so unlikely. Audrey Hepburn is one of the lower entropy states youвЂ™ll find.

Why entropy is increasing